Alleged anti-gay attack takes toll on Staten Island couple

by Winnie McCroy

EDGE Editor

Thursday October 21, 2010

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The rash of anti-gay and -immigrant bias incidents that racked Staten Island this summer have ceased, but the pain felt by the victims of a July 7 attack at their neighborhood White Castle continues to take its toll.

For Luis Vieira and his partner Richard, who still suffers vertigo, migraines, and trauma, the ignorance and anti-gay sentiments they said fueled the attacks remains all too real in their borough and in the city at large.

"As far as the media is concerned, the hate crimes have died out-we haven't really heard anything reported in Staten Island," said Luis Vieira. "We heard about the bias attack in the Manhattan bar, and the situation with the attacks in the Bronx, but regarding us, there are no leads as far as anybody being apprehended for the crime."

Gay state Assemblyman Matt Titone [D-Staten Island] echoed Luis Vieira's sentiments.

"As expected, it has quieted down substantially with the change of weather and with kids back in school," he told EDGE. "There has been no instance of hate crimes recorded on Staten Island as of late, and in fact some of the alleged cases were determined not to be hate crimes: for example, one was a pot bust."

The Vieiras were at a White Castle a few blocks from their Staten Island home around 2:20 a.m. on July 7 when they noticed a group of 40 young black men and women walking down the street. Luis Vieira said one of the young men approached him and his partner and leveled an anti-gay slur at them. As they were leaving the restaurant, Luis Vieira felt something hit the back of his head. He grabbed his cell phone to call 911, but he quickly realized his partner was not with him. Luis Vieira found him bleeding and semiconscious in the parking lot.

The attack against the Vieiras came less than two weeks after three men shouted anti-Mexican epithets at Alejandro Galindo before brutally beating him in Port Richmond. Luis Vieira said he believes a lack of police presence and appropriate response fosters a climate of violence against perceived outsiders in the borough.

"The NYPD [New York Police Department] Hate Crime Task Force said no one in that area was willing to come forward, even with the reward," he said. "So we are trying to get an attorney to look into a class action suit against White Castle or the 120th Precinct of the police department. I still don't think it was handled appropriately; things were not done that should have been, and one reason there are no suspects is because the police sent two inexperienced officers to the scene that couldn't have cared less. No witnesses were interviewed, and only one police car was sent out to intercept the large group, of which not one kid was apprehended. I find this totally unacceptable."

Luis Vieira said he has still not seen a police report of the event, but has been working with an NYPD LGBT liaison. He also said he has been working with the New York City Anti-Violence Project, who he said has helped him and his partner get their substantial medical bills in order.

Luis Vieira further criticized the manner in which he said White Castle employees responded to the incident. He received a letter from Elizabeth Ingram, vice president of restaurant management for White Castle System, Inc., on July 13 that highlighted the "unpleasant experience you had with White Castle" and assured Luis Vieira the company had "shared your concerns with the appropriate personnel in management and in the restaurant."

After the attack, Staten Island Pride Events championed the Vieiras' cause, teaming up with City Councilmember Deborah Rose and Titone to hold a day of solidarity against hate crimes on Aug. 7. And although they had never considered themselves gay activists, the Vieiras have continued to speak out-including at an Oct. 7 event at the College of Staten Island.

"We were the first to speak to the kids there, and managed to open up dialogue for these students to talk about their personal experiences with bigotry and hate, and they were very supportive," said Luis Vieira. "These kids had a genuine concern and passion, and were so adamant about not giving in to bigotry and the horrible things that are going on. There was a real solidarity there for Richard and myself, listening to their stories."

The Vieiras then marched with the students in a candlelight walk to the front of the campus, but the men remain grateful for the support their friends, LGBT Staten Islanders and especially other hate crimes victims have given them. Luis Vieira recalled an event at a black church where they met an elderly woman who was attacked and robbed-the crooked scar from the stitches in her head matched Richard Vieira's.

"You make a change when you connect with those people who have been through what you've been through," said Luis Vieira. "But at the end of the day, when the cameras are gone, it is just Richard and myself. We are the ones left to deal with the situation, and the medical bills. If I was an elected official and was concerned genuinely with the community, I would reach out to those folks impacted."

Titone stressed Staten Islanders have not forgotten the Vieiras.

"The LGBT community in Staten Island is working closely with 'I am Staten Island' and Councilmember Debi Rose, and we are mortified by [Republican gubernatorial candidate] Carl Paladino's recent statements," he said. "We are also disheartened at the recent rash of suicides around the country, and the incidence in the Bronx. These incidences, more than hate crimes, make it important for our community to insure what happened this summer to the gay and Mexican communities does not happen again. We can't condone violence and hate speech against gay persons."

Luis Vieira echoed these concerns.

"Thank God there is a voice or two out here keeping the drive alive that this should not be tolerated," he said. "I never thought much about living in Staten Island. I remember growing up with Alabama trailer-trash rednecks, and there was just this ignorance and close-minded bigotry. And that's the mentality out here! You can't turn a blind eye, because it exists. People are entitled to their opinion, but when you resort to using physical force, there's a real problem."

Winnie McCroy is the Women on the EDGE Editor, HIV/Health Editor, and Assistant Entertainment Editor for EDGE Media Network, handling all women's news, HIV health stories and theater reviews throughout the U.S. She has contributed to other publications, including The Village Voice, Gay City News, Chelsea Now and The Advocate, and lives in Brooklyn, New York.